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# Federal Bribery and Corruption Sentences in the Western District of Texas, FY2016–2025
- URL: https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-bribery-corruption-sentences-western-district-of-texas/
- Published: 2026-11-04T09:52:17.000Z
- Updated: 2026-11-04T09:52:17.000Z
- Description: 69 people were sentenced for bribery and corruption offenses in the Western District of Texas in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. 74% received a prison term, with a median of 30 months. 49% (34) were sentenced below the guideline range at the government's request.
- Author: Jocelyn C. Stewart
- Tags: Understanding Trends, Federal

[Trends](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/) › [Federal Prosecution Analysis](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal/) › [Federal Sentences in the Western District of Texas, FY2016–2](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-district-western-district-of-texas/) › Bribery and Corruption: Western District of Texas

**In brief:** 69 people were sentenced for bribery and corruption offenses in the Western District of Texas in fiscal years 2016 to 2025\. 74% received a prison term, with a median of 30 months. 49% (34) were sentenced below the guideline range at the government's request.

Updated November 4, 2026 · Sources: U.S. Sentencing Commission and Federal Judicial Center, fiscal years 2016–2025

This post uses the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 69 people sentenced in federal court in fiscal years 2016 to 2025\. Acquittals and dismissals come from a second source, the Federal Judicial Center's records of 753,808 federal defendants whose cases ended in fiscal years 2016 to 2025\. It is part of the [Federal Prosecution Analysis](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal/) series, which builds on [Military Moves Toward Sentencing Guidelines to Mirror the Federal System](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/military-sentencing-guidelines-federal-system/). How the numbers were built: [How the Federal Comparison Data Was Built](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-data-methodology/).

## Sentences Below the Range at the Government's Request

34 of the 69 people (49%) were sentenced below the guideline range at the government's request. 14 (20%) were below it without a government request. 18 (26%) were within the range, and 3 (4%) were above it.

In all 94 districts, 21% were sentenced within the range. The rate for every offense type in this district was 77%.

## Prison Terms and Probation

51 of the 69 people (74%) received a prison term, and 12 (17%) received probation only. Among those sent to prison, the median prison term was 30 months (2.5 years). A quarter received 49.5 months or more, and a quarter received 16 months or less.

In all 94 districts, 3,259 people were sentenced for bribery and corruption. 74% were sent to prison, and the median prison term was 18 months. The share sent to prison was the same, and the median was higher in this district.

## Guilty Pleas and Trials

65 of 69 people (94%) pleaded guilty, and 4 were convicted after a trial. The median prison term after a guilty plea was 28 months. After a trial it was 97 months, based on 3 people sent to prison.

97% of the guilty pleas had a written plea agreement, and 3% were straight pleas with no agreement. Across all 94 districts, 91% pleaded guilty.

## Which Guidelines Applied

The Commission's offense type is "Bribery/Corruption", and it labels the district "Texas West". The most common primary guideline was §2C1.1 (Offering, Giving, Soliciting, or Receiving a Bribe), with 57 people.

§2B4.1 (Bribery in Procurement of Bank Loan and Other Commercial Bribery) had 8, and §2C1.2 (Offering, Giving, Soliciting, or Receiving a Gratuity) had 4.

## Supervised Release, Fines, and Restitution

51 people (74%) were ordered to serve supervised release, with a median term of 36 months. A fine was ordered for 24 (35%), and restitution for 31 (45%). A mandatory minimum applied to 3 of the 69 people (4%).

87% were in the lowest criminal history category, and 1% were in the highest.

## A Small and Uneven Yearly Record

In fiscal years 2016 to 2019, 42 people were sentenced. In fiscal years 2020 to 2025, 27 people were sentenced. The yearly table has between 1 and 15 people a year, and fiscal year 2021 has no median.

Medians range from 12 months to 65.5 months. Groups this small do not support conclusions about a trend.

| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
| ----------- | ---------------- | ------------- | -------------- |
| 2016        | 15               | 38 months     | 93%            |
| 2017        | 6                | 15 months     | 6 of 6         |
| 2018        | 10               | 32.5 months   | 80%            |
| 2019        | 11               | 30 months     | 91%            |
| 2020        | 4                | 12 months     | 4 of 4         |
| 2021        | 1                | n/a           | 1 of 1         |
| 2022        | 4                | 24 months     | 4 of 4         |
| 2023        | 4                | 65.5 months   | 4 of 4         |
| 2024        | 8                | 24 months     | 8 of 8         |
| 2025        | 6                | 42 months     | 6 of 6         |

## What Is Not Counted

These cases were less than 1% of the 76,480 people sentenced in the district. Only people who were convicted and sentenced are counted. Courts-martial for installations in the district take place in military courts and are not covered here.

### How We Counted

Everyone sentenced in federal court in the Western District of Texas (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "Texas West") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 whose offense type was "Bribery/Corruption" (69). Offense types are the Commission's OFFGUIDE categories.

Federal fiscal years run from October 1 to September 30\. No person, judge, or lawyer is identified in any of these records.

### What to Keep in Mind

**No parole in federal prison; credit for good conduct.** Federal prison has no parole for crimes committed on or after November 1, 1987\. A federal prisoner can earn up to 54 days of good conduct credit for each year of the sentence the judge imposed, which is about 15%. Some federal prisoners can also earn First Step Act time credits, but many offenses make a person ineligible. The numbers in this post are the sentences judges imposed, not the time people actually served.

**Federal supervised release.** Most federal prison sentences are followed by a term of supervised release that the judge sets as part of the sentence. A person who violates it can be sent back to prison. A court-martial cannot sentence anyone to supervision after release. Military parole and mandatory supervised release are decided later by a board, not by the judge at trial.

**Who decides the sentence, and under what rules.** Federal judges sentence every federal case. They must calculate the Sentencing Guidelines range, which is advisory, and must impose any mandatory minimum the statute requires unless an exception applies. In courts-martial, the accused could choose sentencing by members until the rules changed. For cases in which every guilty finding is for an offense committed after December 27, 2023, a military judge sentences alone, within sentencing parameters. Courts-martial tried in 2024 and later include both old-rule and new-rule cases, and the data cannot tell them apart.

**Time periods.** Federal numbers are by federal fiscal year (October 1 to September 30), based on the sentencing date. The military numbers are by trial date. Neither source has the date of the offense, so a change in law shows up in either data set gradually.

**How life sentences and "time served" are counted.** In the federal numbers, a life sentence is counted as 470 months, and any other sentence longer than 470 months is counted as just under 470 months. A sentence of "time served" is counted as one day (0.03 months). Averages are affected by these rules; medians much less.

**Mandatory minimum sentences.** Many federal statutes on drugs, images of child exploitation, child sex abuse, and firearms carry mandatory minimum prison terms. The UCMJ has mandatory minimums only for a few offenses (a dishonorable discharge or dismissal for rape and sexual assault, and life for premeditated murder). Federal sentences for these offenses are partly set by Congress, not by the judge.

## Related Analysis

- [Military Moves Toward Sentencing Guidelines to Mirror the Federal System](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/military-sentencing-guidelines-federal-system/) (the background article)
- [Federal Prosecution Analysis](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal/) (all federal posts)
- [How the Federal Comparison Data Was Built](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-data-methodology/) (sources and method)
- [Federal Sentences in the Western District of Texas, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-district-western-district-of-texas/) (overview)
- [Federal Immigration Offense Sentences in the Western District of Texas, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-immigration-sentences-western-district-of-texas/) (same district, other offense type)
- [Federal Drug Trafficking Sentences in the Western District of Texas, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-drug-trafficking-sentences-western-district-of-texas/) (same district, other offense type)
- [Federal Firearms Sentences in the Western District of Texas, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-firearms-sentences-western-district-of-texas/) (same district, other offense type)
- [Federal Fraud, Theft, and Embezzlement Sentences in the Western District of Texas, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-fraud-theft-embezzlement-sentences-western-district-of-texas/) (same district, other offense type)
- [U.S. Sentencing Commission, Individual Offender Datafiles](https://www.ussc.gov/research/datafiles/commission-datafiles?ref=bodiesburied.com) (source)
- [Federal Judicial Center, Integrated Database (criminal defendants)](https://www.fjc.gov/research/idb?ref=bodiesburied.com) (source)

**About the author.** Jocelyn C. Stewart is a retired Army JAG with more than 24 years of trying courts-martial and more than 200 jury trials. She hosts *Where All The Bodies Are Buried* and runs the [Law Office of Jocelyn C. Stewart](https://www.ucmj-defender.com/?ref=bodiesburied.com). This analysis is for education and information only. It is not legal advice, and every case is different.